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The 45 walking routes in this Isle of Arran guidebook range from easy 3km (2 miles) nature trails to long arduous mountain routes with scrambles (up to 32km) providing thorough coverage of Arran, including the ascent of Goatfell and nearby Holy Isle. Most routes are 10 to 15km long but many give opportunities to create longer cross-island walks.

Seasons

Arran is good for walking year-round: be aware that the island's population triples in the peak summer period, and deer stalking occurs mid-August to mid-October.

Centres

Brodick; Lamlash; Lochranza

Difficulty

This guidebook include a few easy, waymarked forest trails or low-level walks and a dozen or so moderate glen or hill walks. The rest require more effort, involving higher mountains, sometimes with hands-on scrambling. There are roads and forest tracks, hill tracks or paths, but many routes also cross pathless slopes and traverse rocky mountain ridges.

Must See

Walk Goatfell, Holy Isle, Beinn Nuis, Beinn Tarsuinn, the Sannox Horseshoe, Glen Rosa and the Cock of Arran
Over 40 routes giving thorough coverage of this wild but accessible Scottish island
Varied walking includes all the island's best and classic routes

This guidebook presents a selection of 45 day walks on the popular and accessible Isle of Arran. The routes are between 2 miles (3km) and 20 miles (32km) in length, from easy waymarked forest trails to more arduous mountain walks, exposed ridge routes and scrambles. There are linear and circular walks to choose from, and opportunities to link routes together and create longer walks across the length and breadth of the island. With highlights including Goatfell, Beinn Tarsuinn, the Sannox Horseshoe, Glen Rosa and the Cock of Arran, there's something here to suit walkers of all tastes and all levels of fitness.

Often described as 'Scotland in miniature', Arran boasts a rich variety of landscapes, and walks have been chosen to showcase this variety. There are few roads but ample opportunities to explore the island on foot, or using the excellent bus network. For an island, travel to Arran is remarkably easy: it is not far to Glasgow, from where onward connections to the Isle of Arran are swift and frequent.

All the routes are clearly described with OS mapping, with extra notes revealing the archaeology, history and natural wonders of the island, along with background information on travel to Arran, public transport, and a useful Gaelic/English glossary.

The book includes a summary of the Arran Coastal Way, a complete coastal walk around the Isle of Arran – for more details on the coastal route see The Ayrshire and Arran Coastal Paths.

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Few islands pack as much variety of terrain into such a small area as Arran, and it's very hard to beat as a walking destination. There's a growing tendency to follow the excellent coastal path, but to do only that would be to miss out on such marvels as wild, boggy Gleann Easan Biorach and the high, forbidding moorlands of Tighvein.

This is the perfect guide to take you down paths less obvious.

Scotland Outdoors, May 2016

Cicerone books are always compact, concise and have that attribute of giving confidence. One of the factors, applicable here, is the inclusion of enlarged sections of OS Maps. So the challenging mountain routes and the best low-level walks are put into spatial context and then complemented with good photographs. 44 walks are here to please all ages and conditions of walker.

Scottish Islands Explorer, May 2016

Paddy Dillon's comprehensive guide to walking on Arran is refreshed for 2016, with the latest information on access and facilities on the island, including upgrades to the Arran Coastal Way. The guide covers 44 walks of varying levels of difficulty, from popular strolls to wild moorland romps. Many of these take the walker far from the beaten path. The walks are accompanied by useful maps and text descriptions including notes of historical and geographical interest.

Most of the easier itineraries are classic 'must-dos', with visits to the enigmatic Machrie Moor Stone Circles and the short hike up to the beautiful Caire Fhionn Lochan high on the list for visitors. Others are challenges for the true connoisseur, such as the circuit of Glen lorsa, something that took me ten years to get around to, despite living locally. And with these tougher walks does come a note of caution - if the indefatigable Paddy Dillon says the walk is remote, arduous or boggy, then do expect all these things and more.

Adventure lovers will find plenty of interest amongst the craggy peaks and ridges in the north of the island, which punch above their weight for excitement and challenge. A handy table in the appendices summarises the routes by length and height gain for quick reference. The guide also includes a useful chapter with updated information about transpor links, history, wildlife and amenities on the island, all of which help to give a flavour of life on this rugged yet accessible isle.

Paddy Dillon

Paddy Dillon is a prolific outdoor writer with over 90 guidebooks to his name, and contributions to 40 other publications. He has written for a variety of outdoor magazines, as well as many booklets and brochures for tourism organisations. Paddy lives near the Lake District and has walked in every county in England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales; writing about walks in every one of them. He enjoys simple day walks, challenging long-distance walks, and is a dedicated island-hopper. He has led guided walks and walked extensively in Europe, as well as in Nepal, Tibet, Korea, Africa and the Rocky Mountains of Canada and the United States.